


Something Inside That's Turning my Mind Away

by somedayoneday



Category: Bohemian Rhapsody (Movie 2018), Queen (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Cheating, Dork Lovers Server Challenge, Frottage, Hand Jobs, M/M, Soulmates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-13
Updated: 2019-04-13
Packaged: 2020-01-12 22:22:26
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,600
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18455795
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/somedayoneday/pseuds/somedayoneday
Summary: A month ago, John experienced the moment most people wait their whole lives for. He met his soulmate, the one person in the world destined to be with him, whose mere touch sends sparks through John's whole body.The problem? John already has a wife and three children, and he isn't keen on abandoning them for a man he barely knows.





	Something Inside That's Turning my Mind Away

**Author's Note:**

> For the prompt: "You should have told me earlier."

“Have you told Veronica yet?”

John pretended to ignore Brian when he sat on the park bench beside him, keeping his eyes fixed on Michael playing on the round-about. Still, as John had come to learn over the past few weeks, Brian was rather impossible to ignore. He watched Brian’s little boy – Jimmy – run over to join Michael, pulling him over to the seesaw just as Brian’s hand settled firmly on John’s knee. It sent that same shudder through John that it had the first time.

With a sigh of annoyance, John settled his hand on Brian’s – another frisson of electricity – and then pushed it away before he could entertain the temptation to hold it.

“No. Have you told Chrissie?” John shot back, finally glancing up at Brian. He looked so stupidly fond, looking over at John.

“Not technically, no, but Chrissie knows things aren’t working between us,” Brian replied, at least having the decency to sound a little pained over that – over the fact that his marriage was a wreck, and from what John understood, the blame rested almost solely on Brian’s shoulders. “If you want to try this, I’ll-“ Brian paused mid-sentence, smiling and raising his hand in a curt wave, and John followed his gaze to see Michael looking curiously over at them. Hurriedly, John scooted further away from Brian. “I’ll tell her straight away, if you’ll give this a chance. We can keep it all above board,” Brian continued, “I know that’s important to you.”

The fact that Brian was so willing to throw away his marriage for John made something twist uncomfortably in the younger man’s gut.  

It had been just over a month since they’d first met. Brian had bumped into John in this very playground – quite literally, catching John by the arm just in time to stop him falling – and they’d shared twin looks of shock at the frisson that burst through their skin at the touch.

Soulmates, undeniably.

Brian had reached out to touch John’s cheek almost immediately to confirm it, and the shudder of electricity that ran through him had hit John so hard his knees had nearly buckled before he could bat Brian’s hand away. The memory ran through John’s head more often than he cared to admit; he found himself yearning for the pin-prick tingles of Brian’s hands on his skin, wondering how that would make a kiss feel…

Back in the present, Brian was watching John expectantly. Waiting for an answer to his original question.

Would John tell Veronica about this?

“I can’t,” John muttered, and for all that he’d mulled this exact conversation over in his head – last night, lying awake in bed with Veronica tucked at his side, unable to sleep – it was so much harder in reality. Still, he pushed on. “I can’t do this, Brian. It’s… wrong, and unfair. To our wives, and to our children… I hardly know you, on top of all that. It’s just so… so _unreasonable_ to throw everything away for somebody I don’t really know.”

In John’s imagination, Brian had nodded, accepting that John’s argument was astoundingly reasonable, and then left, never to tempt John with his presence again.

In reality, Brian was far more stubborn. Mulish, one might say.

“You haven’t taken the time to get to know me,” Brian pointed out, “You haven’t let yourself.”

“I know you enough to decide-“

“And you barely tell me anything about yourself. Don’t I deserve to get to know my soulmate before he pushes me away forever?” Brian said, soundly interrupting John.

John was almost glad for Brian speaking over him, because the conversation was exhausting. A glance over at Michael suggested that his son didn’t look anything close to tired out from playing, so that couldn’t be used as an excuse to leave early.

“I know you care about your family, John,” Brian continued, soft and frustratingly reasonable, “I lo- I respect that about you. But I think it’s only fair that you give this a chance too.” John pursed his lips. “A day. One day, and if you’re still convinced you’re happier with Veronica, well, then I’ll wish you two the best and get out of your hair.”

John hesitated, mapping out the coming fortnight looking for a day he could spend with Brian uninterrupted without raising suspicion. There was one, next Sunday. Veronica was taking the children to see her parents, and John wasn’t expected to attend as he had to get to work early the next morning.

Still, he could just as easily lie, and tell Brian that he was a father of three, and so simply didn’t have that sort of time to spare, and couldn’t possibly-

Brian’s hand came over to settle on John’s knee again – provoking that frisson that transcended just physical desire – and he gave in.

“Next Sunday, then,” John sighed, “Nothing too public.”

\--------------------------------------

John had wanted the day to go badly. Of course, then, it had been destined to go unreasonably well.

Despite an awkward start in the morning – when John had been dreadfully aware that this constituted cheating on his wife – it hadn’t taken an awful long time for them to get talking. Really talking – conversation flowing in a way it so rarely did with someone John didn’t know well, both of them losing all track of time… Brian’s hand finding John’s across the wobbly café table, and squeezing gently, and staying there for the whole conversation.

One might have thought they’d have run out of conversation topics after a while, but they’d chatted away easily through dinner – sat tucked away in the corner of a cosy Italian place – and on the car ride back to John’s house.

It was stood outside John’s front door that conversation finally dried up. Words weren’t needed. John looked Brian in the eye and couldn’t bear the thought of him walking away right then and there, and never coming to the park to see John again.

Was that worse, he wondered, than the thought of abandoning the unerringly loyal Veronica, and fracturing the family they’d so lovingly built together?

He wasn’t ready to answer that question. He was a coward.

Motivated by sheer impulse, John leaned forward, and Brian met him in the middle, kissing him with such fervour that it seemed to knock the breath out of John’s lungs. Cupping his cheek with one hand, Brian licked his way into John’s mouth, slow and purposeful, walking John back ‘til he was pressed shuddering against the front door, the knob of it digging into his back.

The kissing seemed to go on forever. John fumbled in his coat pocket, grabbing his keys, but he couldn’t bring himself to break away in order to actually unlock the door – just kept kissing Brian instead. It wasn’t until he felt the press of Brian’s cock against his thigh – unmistakably hard, even through his trousers – that John finally kicked into action, breaking the kiss and turning to unlock the door.

He fumbled more than he ought to have, Brian’s hands curling round his hips from behind, warm lips peppering kisses down the back of John’s neck and making his hands tremble. The little zings of energy that the gentle touches sent racing through John were somehow simultaneously overwhelming, and not enough. He wanted Brian’s hands sliding up under his shirt, wanted Brian’s bare skin against his, wanted Brian enveloping him and pressing into him-

John’s mind whirred to a halt briefly. It seemed there was probably a technicality worth mentioning, before the heat of the moment dragged them out of that space where words were needed or wanted.

“I’ve never been with a man,” John mumbled as he finally got the door open, pulling Brian inside.

“I haven’t since I was a student,” Brian replied, letting John lead him in a hurry up the staircase, past proudly displayed photographs: John and Veronica’s wedding day, the birth of their first son, their fifth anniversary…

“I’m only saying because I’m not sure that I’ll like the feeling of-“ Brian’s hand slipped down to squeeze John’s arse through his trousers, “- _that._ ”

Brian chuckled softly. “Sorry,” he said, hand slipping back up to rest at John’s hip, “I wasn’t planning on doing any of _that_ tonight _,_ though, don’t worry.” And John felt a momentary relief, which was quickly supplanted by aching desire when Brian’s lips bumped against the shell of his ear and he continued, “We’ll save it for when I can take my time.”

They stumbled a few times on the way over to the bed – a by-product of attempting to strip out of their clothes, and keep kissing eachother, and walk all at the same time. Still, they managed it eventually, John landing on the bed now clad only in his pants and one white sock, Brian joining him with his shirt hanging open and his briefs halfway down his hips – which was John’s doing – showing the flushed head of his cock, wet with precum.

For a few moments, they just held each other’s gaze, both of them a little out of breath. Then, Brian leaned down, capturing John’s lips in another kiss and John was lost to the moment. He ground his hips up against Brian’s, hitching a leg up to give a better angle and panting out soft, encouraging sounds as Brian took the cue to press his hips back down against John’s. The frissons of tremulous electricity that Brian’s touch brought about merged into one thrumming heat spread through John’s body, and he moaned helplessly as Brian shucked his underwear further down and wrapped a warm hand around both of their cocks.

John found himself cupping Brian’s face in his hands, shaky fingers stroking Brian’s cheeks as he rolled his hips rhythmically into the older man’s grasp. Distantly, he heard Brian breathing his name out – low and awed – and John couldn’t tear his eyes away from Brian’s, not even to satisfy the burgeoning desire to kiss him. He just let himself melt into the sensation of it all, his cock sliding up against Brian’s, his fingers slipping back to stroke through Brian’s hair, and it could have been ten seconds or it could have been ten years when John finally gave in to the coursing, molten heat racing through him.

He gasped out a moan as he spilled between them, and it didn’t even surprise him when Brian seemed to finish at the exact same moment. A soulmate thing, presumably. Two parts of the same whole. John had heard the phrase a thousand times, but blinking up at Brian, he felt it. He felt it in the lingering warmth spreading through his whole body, coalescing in his chest and swelling as Brian smiled softly down at him.

Without even thinking about it, John found himself shuffling over when Brian moved to lie beside him, tucking his face against the taller man’s chest. They were both still a bit sticky, but there was no harm, surely, in letting his eyes slip shut for just a moment. After all, he felt so wonderfully satiated, and when Brian’s arm hooked neatly around his waist, the thought of pulling away to clean up and get dressed seemed unfathomable.

Yes, John mused, no harm at all in just taking five minutes…

A soft thud of something dropping to the floor and a stifled gasp were enough to rouse John from the contented haze he’d been drifting in – and still, he was feeling pleased enough in Brian’s arms to ignore the interruption, until his mind caught up with the situation about five seconds too late and he sat up abruptly.

Veronica stood in the doorway, suitcase dropped on the floor beside her.

She was staring more at Brian than John, wide-eyed shock written across her face. The staring seemed to last a long time, with John just staring back at her, and then the silent, frozen moment they’d seemed trapped in shattered.

“I’ve put the children to bed,” Veronica said softly, priorities straight as always. It was one of the things John loved about her.

Had loved about her.

“We should talk,” she continued, and her voice was strained now. Her eyes darted back to Brian. “In private,” she added, and then she was gone, leaving John with the soft sound of her sensible heels descending the staircase and the feeling of Brian finally stirring beside him.

“Get dressed,” John mumbled, and it didn’t come out particularly loud, so he repeated himself, “Get dressed, Brian. You need to go home.”

Brian made a vague, sleepy sound beside him, and John wished he could hate the way it tugged at something warm and fond in his chest.

Still, after getting a look from John – an attempt at being stern, but John was sure he just looked upset – Brian pulled himself out of bed and went to grab his clothes from the floor. John had the restraint not to stare at his arse as he stepped away, but he couldn’t deny the little shiver that went through him when Brian brushed a kiss against his shoulder on his way out of bed.

“Veronica saw,” John muttered finally, once he’d gotten out of bed himself and pulled on some pants and a dressing gown. A sympathetic look crossed Brian’s face as he slid his shirt back on.

“What does that mean for…” Brian trailed off, but gestured between the two of them. John caught his drift.

“I don’t know. I don’t- I don’t know, I need to speak to her,” John sighed, “And you need to go. Now, really, she’s downstairs and I… I’ll call, okay? After I’ve had time to think, after… I’ll call you.”

Brian didn’t seem entirely happy with the answer, but after a moment, nodded. He stepped over, as if to press a goodbye kiss to John’s lips, but then evidently thought better of it and stepped back. Watching him, John just pursed his lips.

“Come on, I’ll let you out,” he sighed.

It was in awkward silence that he led Brian downstairs – painfully conscious of Veronica’s silhouetted figure sat in the mostly darkened living room – gave only the briefest of nods to bid Brian goodbye, and then stood by the door for a few moments, watching him go.

When John did finally turn back into the house, he was faced with Veronica – close enough to startle him.

“He’s your soulmate, isn’t he?” she asked, cutting right to the point. Leave it to Veronica – viciously smart and insightful – to realise right away. It was almost nice, as well, that she gave John the benefit of the doubt and assumed he wouldn’t cheat in any other circumstance.

John nodded.

Veronica’s eyes fell shut, and she sighed.

“You met him today?”

John hated that he had to shake his head to that. “About five weeks ago,” he murmured.

There was a moment where John was terribly scared she might cry, and he wouldn’t know whether to hug her or stay back. The tears didn’t come, though. Veronica just surveyed him for a long moment, like she was searching for something – perhaps some hint of how John felt about her, now that he’d met the person who was supposedly perfect for him in every way.

Whatever she saw, it didn’t lead to the long, drawn out discussion John had been expecting. It didn’t lead to a fight, either, which he’d worried might happen.

“You should have told me sooner,” she said instead, simple and cutting. And then she turned, and made her way back upstairs, hands trembling just slightly at her sides as she did.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading!!! Many thanks to Havvy (deHavilland), who I originally brainstormed this concept with.
> 
> As always, comments and kudos are very much appreciated <3


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